LevelUP: an 8-bit novel by Micah Joel. Author's definitive online edition.
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INVENTORY:
* MEDICINE
* COIN
* MYSTERIOUS SCROLL
* WOODEN SWORD
* STEALTH CLOAK
* IVORY TORCH OF THE ENDLESS FIRE
It is dark. You have been eaten by a grue.
But not completely dark. A line of ghostly hearts blinks along the bottom third of Max’s field of view. As if to emphasize their importance, they no longer get out of his way when not needed—a constant reminder of impending…
Damage. The red drains out of another heart. Running out of time and life. The trophy had been right there. Just out of reach. Now Max’s character was about to die and get respawned at the starting location. He pulls out his wooden sword and attacks the black slime all around him. The sword crumbles to ash in his hands. Max screams in frustration.
Another heart. There’s got to be something he can do. He got medicine from the Muses. He uses it and gets three red hearts back. But at the rate they’re dropping, that will only buy him a few extra seconds.
What else? “Inventory,” Max calls out.
INVENTORY:
* COIN
* MYSTERIOUS SCROLL
* STEALTH CLOAK
* IVORY TORCH OF THE ENDLESS FIRE
The Ivory Torch of the Endless Fire looks interesting, but Max can’t see how useful it would be. Same goes for the cloak. But what about the coin?
Another heart.
The Eigenthief left the coin. What kind of coin would a thief keep?
“Inspect coin,” Max says. Nothing happens. “Drop coin.” Again, nothing. Well, at least one mystery solved. The coin is somehow trapped in inventory.
In other words, no good to him in his time of need. Another heart. Down to the last three.
Time slows. The darkness reminds Max of the bigger darkness that happened before. Damage. Adults rushed about like they could do something about the unfolding tragedy, but young Max huddled in the consuming darkness…
Every night seemed that dark for a long time. Max remembers more. He had hair sprouting from strange places on his body by the time he was able to fall asleep without a cold shiver rippling through his tense muscles.
So here’s Max lying on his side in bed, curled in a tight fetal position. It’s not a comfortable bed, so this must be the shelter. He lies perfectly still, not even reaching for an itch on his calf. If he can stay still enough, long enough, the feeling will pass, letting him wilt into an uneasy sleep. The itch builds in intensity, sharp as a pinprick. It burns!
When he can’t stand it any longer, Max reaches to scratch. But a bigger, stronger hand catches his wrist.
“Easy,” the voice says. Max has heard that voice before.
“Don’t scratch, that’ll just make it worse,” the voice says. At that moment Max wishes above all else that his dad were there to comfort—his dad who abandoned him so long ago that he’d become more of an impression than a concrete memory. Max squeezes his eyelids tighter and tries to remember, but even that’s gone.
“Never forget that you’re the key to all of this. Get some sleep. You’ve been through a lot.”
Another heart vanishes. The Game. Max was after something important. The trophy. What just happened? Was that a dream or a memory? Soon, it won’t matter.
Never forget that you’re the key. “Use key?” Max says tentatively.
Nothing happens except another heart winking out. Down to the last one. An insistent beeping rings in Max’s ears. What else is there to do? The only usable thing in his inventory is that coin.
“Use coin.”
1 CREDIT(S). PRESS START TO CONTINUE.
“Press start?” The sound of a trophy being added to inventory is the last thing Max hears before a sea of red consumes his world.
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Copyright 2018, 2019 Micah Joel. All rights reserved.